Financial Rules of UK Public Health Register

Transcription

1 Date: July 2016 Review term: 5 years Next review: July 2021 Financial Rules of UK Public Health Register 1. Introduction 1.1 UKPHR is under legal and statutory obligations, including as set out in its Memorandum of Association and its Articles of Association, to make, retain and keep safe records of all financial transactions. 1.2 As a registered Company, UKPHR must account to Companies House for its income and expenditure and may be required to produce its financial records. 1.3 As a registered charity in England & Wales and in Scotland, UKPHR must account to the Charity Commission and to the Scottish Charity Regulator for its income and expenditure and may be required to produce its financial records. 1.4 UKPHR has dealings with HM Revenue & Customs and under tax law is required to maintain proper financial control of the Company. 1.5 These rules set out UKPHR s internal governance arrangements for discharging its legal and statutory obligations effectively and transparently. 2. Accounts 2.1 UKPHR s books of accounts must include: A cashbook containing all the transactions appearing on the bank accounts; A petty cash book for any cash payments being made. 2.2 A financial report outlining the income, expenditure and an estimate of future expenditure for the current financial year must be presented to the Directors at each scheduled Board meeting. 2.3 A budget for the next financial year, setting out forecast income, expenditure and assets available to the Company must be presented to the Directors at a meeting of the Board held before the start of the financial year in question. 2.4 The Board must set up an Audit & Risk Committee and appoint at least two Directors to the Committee and ensure that it meets at least twice in every financial year. The Audit & Risk Committee must arrange an annual audit of the Company s accounts and report the outcome of the audit to the Board. Page 1 of 6

2 2.5 The Board must draw up, or arrange to be drawn up by a qualified accountant, annual accounts of the Company s financial performance. The annual accounts must: Be for a full financial year of the Company s activities (except in the event that the Company ceases to be active part-way through a financial year or other exceptional circumstance); Be drawn up within 3 months of the close of the financial year to which they relate; Be presented to the next Annual General Meeting of the Board and be approved by the Board; Be delivered to Companies House, the Charity Commission and the Scottish Charity Regulator after being approved by the Board. 2.6 The Board must arrange for all Directors and all other members of the Company to be provided with a set of accounts annually. 3. Banking 3.1 UKPHR banks with Lloyds Bank and holds an account there in the name of the Company: Lloyds Bank, 43 Temple Row, Birmingham B2 5JP 3.2 There must be at least 3 signatories on the bank mandate for signing cheques, with 1 out of 3 signatures being required as authority for the Bank to make payment. 3.3 The Board authorises the use of internet banking by its Chief Executive and its Registration Services Manager. All transactions carried out electronically must be approved in advance in writing by the Chief Executive or the Chair. 3.4 The bank mandate as to cheque signatories, and any changes to it, must be approved by the Board. 3.5 UKPHR must arrange to receive regular statements from the Bank, which will be used in accounting for income and expenditure and reconciling the petty cash book. 3.6 Instructions to open or close bank accounts must be authorised by the Board. 3.7 All payments received via online banking must be referenced and accounted for. 3.8 An online payment form must be completed before making an online payment and must be signed by the Chief Executive and the written approvals must be produced to the Chair of the Board for inspection. Once payment has been made via online banking, the payment reference must be added on to the online payment form and filed appropriately. A payment successful confirmation must also be printed and attached with the payment form. 3.9 Registrants are able to make payments to UKPHR via PayPal. All such receipts must be deposited in UKPHR s PayPal account which will be checked regularly, usually by the Registration Services Manager, and balances transferred into UKPHR s bank account. Page 2 of 6

3 4. Receipt of payments 4.1 All payments received by UKPHR, including payments received electronically, must be recorded and accounted for. 4.2 All cheques received should be recorded and placed promptly in the cheques folder in the Finance file. 4.3 All payments received by physical means in UKPHR s office, including cheques, must be recorded in the cash book and banked in a timely manner. 4.4 Anyone connected with UKPHR who receives any payment on UKPHR s behalf must deliver it to UKPHR s office for recording and processing. 5. Cheque & Invoice Payments 5.1 UKPHR requires all expenditure to be properly authorised and a record must be made of all authorisations. 5.2 It is the Chief Executive s responsibility to: Sign a cheque requisition form authorising each and every cheque payment; Insert the relevant payee s name on every cheque before it is signed and complete all other cheque requirements, for example the date; Obtain signatures on cheques from authorised bank signatories only; In all cases involving payment of invoices, confirm receipt of the invoice or other original documentation for the payment required before making payment; and Prevent blank cheques ever being signed. 5.3 It is the Administrator s responsibility to: Hold the Company s cheque books (unused and partly used cheque books) and them securely; Obtain the Chief Executive s authority to pay invoices, usually twice a month on the 2 nd and 4 th Wednesday of the month; and Make payment, or arrange for the Chief Executive or the Registration Services Manager, to make payment electronically, usually twice a month on the 2 nd and 4 th Friday of the month. 5.4 Usually, invoices will be paid via BACS by the Registration Services Manager. Page 3 of 6

4 6. Payment Documentation 6.1 Payments made from UKPHR s bank accounts must be evidenced by an original invoice, or other original documentation (but a supplier s statement or final demand is not sufficient evidence) and/or a duly completed cheque requisition form. 6.2 Original invoices must be recorded, filed and kept safe for inspection and audit. 6.3 Cheque signatories are responsible for checking that cheques they sign are fully completed and that they are accompanied by a signed authorisation containing the individual cheque number, date cheque drawn and amount of cheque. 6.4 In the case of cheques not being supported by an original invoice, for example advance booking fees or reimbursement of expenses, signatories may still sign cheques provided that a duly completed cheque requisition form accompanies it. 7. Salaries 7.1 All employees must be paid salaries, other remuneration, bonuses and expenses in accordance with all relevant PAYE and National Insurance regulations. 7.2 Salaries are paid on the last Thursday of each month unless otherwise specified. 7.3 All staff appointments and departures should be recorded by the Registration Manager, recording dates and, in relation to appointments, starting salary levels. 8. Petty Cash and Minor Expenses 8.1 It is the Administrator s responsibility to hold and keep safe petty cash on behalf of UKPHR using a float system. A cash float shall from time to time as necessary be drawn from the Lloyds bank account and not from any other source, for example by holding onto money received in the office on behalf of UKPHR. 8.2 All petty cash expenditure must be supported by receipts and all petty cash must be recorded and evidenced accordingly. Page 4 of 6

5 9. Reimbursement of Expenses Incurred on UKPHR Business 9.1 UKPHR will reimburse reasonable expenditure by employees, Directors and others in accordance with the scheme for reimbursement of expenses from time to time approved by the Board. Claims by the Chief Executive for reimbursement of expenses must be signed by the Chair of UKPHR. 9.2 Payment by way of reimbursement is conditional on: An expense form is completed with all relevant details of expenses; All expenditure is evidenced by original receipts (accompanying the form); 9.3 Air travel is discouraged but will be reimbursed when it is the most practicable transport mode for a specific journey. 9.4 Rail travel is reimbursed at standard fare rates. 9.5 Car and bicycle mileage is reimbursed based on a scale as from time to time approved by the Board. 9.6 Subsistence costs, including accommodation away from home, is reimbursed based on a scale as from time to time approved by the Board. 10. Authority for committing UKPHR to Expenditure 10.1 The Board authorises: The Chief Executive to approve expenditure up to 5,000; The Chair to approve expenditure up to 10, The Board requires authorisation of expenditure over 10,000 to be by the Board The value of a contract is to be assessed as the total amount to be paid, or the best estimate that can be made at the time of the total amount to be paid, for the full duration of the contract period The Board s authorisations must be recorded and published All approvals of expenditure in accordance with this Standing Order must be recorded and on every occasion both the authorisation and the expenditure must also be recorded The Board may from time to time vary one or more of the authorisations set out in this Standing Order provided that in order for the variation to have effect the Board must record and publish the variation or variations in the same manner as the previous authorisation was recorded and published pursuant to Page 5 of 6

6 11. Obtaining Quotes and Inviting Tenders 11.1 In any case to which 10.1 applies, the Chief Executive (with regard to ) and the Chair (with regard to ) shall comply with the requirements set out in Before approving any expenditure, the Chief Executive and/or the Chair (as the case may be) shall: Consider, having regard to the amount of expenditure likely to be incurred, the importance to UKPHR of the expenditure, fairness and transparency, whether to prepare and publish an Invitation to Tender for the work envisaged to be undertaken and/or the goods to be supplied; In any case where a decision is made not to invite tenders, obtain at least three quotations from reputable sources for the work and/or goods on which it is proposed to incur expenditure on UKPHR s behalf The Chief Executive and/or the Chair may dispense with the requirement to obtain three quotations in the event of an emergency or a practical difficulty in obtaining three quotations provided that the decision is reported to the Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee immediately and to the Board at its next meeting Before approving under 10.2 any expenditure, the Board shall cause to be published an Invitation to Tender for the work envisaged to be undertaken and/or the goods to be supplied The Board may suspend the application of these Standing Orders in respect of any individual decision required to be made under , , 10.2 and 11.4 by formal resolution passed at a Board meeting stating the reasons for the suspension At least 14 days public notice shall be given in a newspaper or journal circulating among such persons or bodies who undertake such contracts or an effective e- marketing media and on UKPHR s website. The notice shall: Express the nature and purpose of the contract, state where further details may be obtained; Invite tenders for its execution; and State the last date and time when tenders will be received No tender received after the time and date specified in the invitation shall be accepted or considered unless, in the view of the Chair, there is an exceptional reason why the tender is late and there is no possibility that the tender received late could have been submitted after the contents of other tenders was known to UKPHR All tenders received shall be recorded. They shall all be opened at the same time and be evaluated in accordance with these Standing Orders Every contract shall: Be in writing and signed by an Officer of UKPHR duly authorised; Specify the goods and/or services to be supplied and the work to be done; the price to be paid; the period(s) within which the contract is to be performed and such other conditions and terms as may be agreed between the parties Each contract shall state that the contractor shall not transfer or assign directly or indirectly the contract or any part of the contract without UKPHR s written consent. DK/Financial SOs June 2016 Page 6 of 6